More action in the Bay

St Francis Yacht Club's Big Boat Series gets underway on Thursday

Anticipation is growing in San Francisco for the upcoming Big Boat Series Presented by Rolex, set to take place at the St. Francis Yacht Club on September 16-19. Noted as one of the world’s premier sailing events, the 40th annual regatta has the added distinction of introducing IRC racing in the United States this year. To date, there are 24 entries in the IRC fleet and a diverse fleet of one-designs that make up the 100-plus boat roster competing for six historic Perpetual Trophies. At the conclusion of the four-day regatta, specially engraved Rolex timepieces also will be awarded to the perpetual trophy winners.

Karl Kwok of Hong Kong, China returns to the Big Boat Series after a six-year hiatus and will compete in the nine-boat TP52 class with his one-year-old Beau Geste, which bears the same Chinese red dragon symbol of his previous campaigns. BMW Oracle Racing helmsman Gavin Brady joins the roster. "My TP52 will be the biggest Beau Geste to race in this series to date," said Kwok, referring to his previous Beau Gestes, a Corel 45 in 1996 and an IMS 49 in 1998. "I have always enjoyed sailing in the Bay, and I am looking forward to an exciting regatta especially in the TP52 class. This in essence is the biggest gathering of the class so far. It will be fun for me as and the other skippers!"

The defending TP52 class champion is Rosebud, owned by Roger Sturgeon and it will be back to defend its title. According to the class organizer, Tom Pollack, this year’s fleet – the largest to date – is particularly notable due to the change in class rules to accommodate an asymmetrical spinnaker for inshore racing. "The TP 52s will be using the larger 25-foot spinnaker poles and 2665 square-foot spinnakers which was Yassou owner Jim Demetriades's idea," he said. "This means that if conditions are really big, with wind speeds in the 20-plus range, the ‘A-sails’ don’t collapse when they jibe, so look for the fleet to be faster downwind."

In the IRC class, one of the standout entries belongs to Nicholas Lykiardopulo. His Kerr 55 Aera is racing its first major regatta in the U.S. with this event and will have in its crew Jez Fanstone, skipper of News Corp in the previous Volvo Ocean Race. Although the IRC fleet will be divided into divisions based on each boat’s individual rating, the group includes such standout entries as the Schumacher 53 Swiftsure II, owned by six-time champion Sy Kleinman who has raced in the event 24 times. Robert Youngjohns will debut his new DK 46 yacht Zephyra.

In the 30-boat J/105 class Good Timin, owned by San Francisco brothers Chris and Phil Perkins and Dave Wilson, returns to defend its overall fleet victory from 2004. According to class secretary Eden Kim, owner of the J/105 Whisper, the fleet has its work cut out for them against Good Timin. "Good Timin has won three events this summer, with 13 first-places, 4 seconds and 2 thirds in individual races," he said. "The class is vying for the newly established StFYC Perpetual Commodore's Cup, which will be presented each year to the one design class that has the largest number of entrants."

Jim Richardson will compete in the Farr 40 class, fresh off his victory in the Rolex Farr 40 Worlds, held here last week. Richardson is the returning class champion with his Barking Mad, and he will face nine other competitors, including Steve & Fred Howe’s Warpath, the third-place boat at the Worlds. Terry Hutchinson will call tactics for Barking Mad.

St. Francis Yacht Club’s Big Boat Series presented by Rolex will be featured in the television program "The Spirit of Yachting," to be broadcast internationally beginning January of 2005. For sailors worldwide, the Rolex "Spirit of Yachting" films convey the exciting highlights of the racing season. Each year, from a host of locales that offer spectacular conditions and intense competition, Rolex produces a series of 30-minute films capturing the racing action.